Monday, October 15, 2012

'Paddy' Berger - Kop Favourite

Patrik
Berger added a touch of glamour to the Liverpool midfield

By Emdad Rahman

Original article - Patrik
Berger was a made man even before he stepped off the plane at Liverpool John
Lennon Airport. The Czech was a teen star in his homeland and had featured
prominently in the side that reached the Euro '96 final.

The youngster's star rose and
he left Sparta Prague for rivals Slavia. Sparta continued to dominate the
League but Berger's mercurial talents were being monitored closely, and in 1995
he joined Ottmar Hitzfeld's Borussia Dortmund.

The veteran head coach
designated his new charge with a less fancied holding midfield role and,
despite his unhappiness, Berger finished his only season in Germany with the
Bundesliga and Super Cup, scoring four goals in 25 appearances.

Playing alongside Pavel Nedved
and Karol Poborsky it was Berger's attacking instincts that came to the fore at
Euro '96 and with Premier League teams scouting for top European talent Roy
Evans quickly stepped in. Southport was the next port of call and the dashing
Berger was whisked off to Anfield, joining the illustrious Patrick Vieira,
Robert Di Matteo, Gianluca Vialli and Fabrizio Ravenelli in England.

Flowing hair and the Alice
band added a touch of glamour and rock and roll. Opposition fans didn’t quite
see it that way and many away fans gleefully taunted the fashion sense of the
Czech star.

Despite the glitz and glamour,
here was a gifted footballer with a lethal left peg, who barring injury, would
have won far more than 44 international caps.

Berger had a blistering start
to his Liverpool career with his second appearance resulting in
two goals against Leicester City. Foxes Goalkeeper Kasey Keller raved:
"I’ve never seen a ball move so fast in my life. It’s a good job I didn’t
get in the way of either shot or I’d have been back in the net with it."
His first start led to another brace against Chelsea and the player of the
month award.

Roy Evans pushed the Czech
star further upfield to compensate for the lack of goals from the Stan
Collymore and Robbie Fowler partnership. Berger finished the campaign with nine
goals.

The highlight of the 1997/98
season was a hattrick against Chelsea. Controversy followed in 1998 after he
incurred the wrath of Evans for refusing to accept a place on subs bench. The
feeling was mutual and Berger likened Liverpool to "a Third or Second
Division club - not like the Liverpool I expected."

It seemed that Berger's career
was on a downward slope but, with AS Roma showing interest, Gerard Houllier
came to the rescue. The Frenchman deployed Berger behind the front two and the
central positioning led to immediate dividends with four goals in the next five
games. Iconic strikes against Leeds United, Tottenham, Manchester United and
Wimbledon have made Berger a firm favourite amongst Liverpool fans.

After a disappointing Euro
2000 Berger played a role in Liverpool's treble trophy assault in 2001/01, with the
undoubted highlights being the pass that set up Michael Owen's FA Cup Final
winner against Arsenal at Cardiff's Millenium Stadium and the magical 5-4 Uefa
Cup final victory over Alaves.

Injuries took their toll and
from 2003 onwards Berger transferred to Portsmouth, Aston Villa, Stoke City
before returning home with Slavia Prague and Prague sixth Division outfit Dolni
Chabry. At Villa his stint was cut bluntly short after 29 games after it emerged
that he had encouraged skipper Gareth Barry to join Liverpool.

An quote from an interview
with the Sunday Times in 2004 cements
Berger's hero status: "You know, the greatest day in my football life was
the day I signed for Liverpool. I couldn’t believe it.

"When I was young in
Czechoslovakia, we didn’t see much European football, but my father’s friend
went to England and he watched Liverpool. When he came back, he gave me the programme, the
ticket and a scarf. I still have them all.

"When I moved to
Southport to live, my neighbour was Kenny Dalglish. Alan Hansen lived around
the corner. I met them, they were normal guys, but they were my heroes. To me,
it’s the best club in the world and when I am finished playing and I’m telling
my children about it I will be proud to say that for seven years I was a
Liverpool player."

A dodgy knee forced the boots
to be hung up in May 2008. Sparta coach Jozef Chovanec said: "Patrik told
me yesterday, 'It's over. My knee doesn't support the burden any more'. We have
to deal with it. Thank you, Patrik, for everything you have done for Sparta and
the entire Czech football."

"Paddy" was simply a
class act. Injury prevented him from greater achievements at Liverpool but the
silky runs, playmaking skills, the flowing locks and the blistering left foot
piledrivers reserve this outstanding footballer a special place in the hearts
of all Reds.